


Special Delivery

by Anatui



Series: Special Delivery Universe [1]
Category: Digimon - All Media Types, Digimon Adventure Zero Two | Digimon Adventure 02
Genre: Adulthood, Chef Motomiya Daisuke | Davis Motomiya, Flirting, Fluff and Humor, Food Trucks, Food as a Metaphor for Love, Gen, High School, Ichijouji Ken Is Bad at Self-Care, M/M, Matchmaking, POV Original Character, POV Outsider, Ramen, Sapiosexual Motomiya Daisuke | Davis Motomiya, Slice of Life, Snarky Ichijouji Ken, Teacher Ichijouji Ken
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-13
Updated: 2020-01-13
Packaged: 2021-02-27 11:01:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,467
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22146112
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anatui/pseuds/Anatui
Summary: "Sensei, sensei," Megumi cried. "Who was that man?""You know him, don't you?" Hina asked.Ichijouji-sensei arched an eyebrow in a way that could quieten an entire classroom. "Ladies, I simply forgot my lunch today and had food delivered. Why don't you go back to your meals?" Then, he smiled his serene smile—the one that made at least half the student body swoon—and slowly pried open his container of steaming ramen.Hina frowned, uncertain.Behind them, a Noguchi Hideyo shouted, "Are you sure, sensei? He seemed awfullyfamiliarwith you for some ramen delivery guy."At his desk, Ichijouji bit back his laughter. "He's not just a delivery person, Noguchi-kun. He's the owner and operator."ORKen, a high school history teacher, hasn't told his students anything about his life before becoming a teacher, and when Daisuke randomly stops by during lunch one day, Ken's homeroom students are determined to learn more about their teacher's previous life—and hopefully snag him a date with the cute ramen cart owner who's clearly flirting with him.
Relationships: Ichijouji Ken/Motomiya Daisuke | Davis Motomiya
Series: Special Delivery Universe [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1643266
Comments: 20
Kudos: 127
Collections: Ana's 2020 Writing Challenge, Daiken Discord Server





	Special Delivery

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, this one-shot took forever to put together, but I hope you enjoy.
> 
>  **STORY #3**  
>  **Word:** Appetizing  
>  **[Prompt](https://dailyau.tumblr.com/post/189473514729/my-students-are-trying-to-set-us-up-and-im-not):** My students are trying to set us up, and I’m not opposed to it. Maybe I actually kind of like you. AU (though this didn't quite turn out as an AU)
> 
> A little background info for this fic:  
> This is set in approximately 2023 when Daisuke and Ken are 32. Digimon are known throughout the world, but not everyone has one. People know about the Chosen Children saving the world, but the details, though available, aren't common knowledge.  
> Ken and Hikari are both high school teachers, and Daisuke owns his ramen cart, which has already become a worldwide sensation and makes him quite a bit of money (not that he'd ever let it go to his head).
> 
> Also, a big thank you to my friends on the Daiken Discord server for helping spawn this idea! Y'all are the best!

The students of class 2-1 had always considered themselves incredibly lucky. They were, after all, blessed with Shibaura High School's most loved teacher, Ichijouji Ken, for homeroom. When he wasn't leading their homeroom, he taught history, and he was easily one of the best teachers in the entire prep school.

Plus, there was the fact that, even in his early thirties, Ichijouji easily set hearts aflame with his soft smile and kind eyes.

But as much as the girls of Shibaura—and many of the boys—pined after Ichijouji, everyone knew the only one who had a chance with him was Yagami Hikari, who was the homeroom teacher for class 1-3 on the floor below. From what little the students could tell, the two of them had some sort of history. They were childhood sweethearts or longtime friends or _something_ , but no matter how much the students of 2-1 pried, Ichijouji wouldn't reveal a thing. He simply smiled at their curious inquiries and redirected their attention to their daily toban. When Yagami too refused to provide intel, the students of Shibaura High School were forced to form their own conclusions.

Most likely, the two teachers were dating.

Or _wanted_ to be dating.

While inter-teacher relations weren't forbidden, they were frowned upon, and teachers as conscientious as Ichijouji and Yagami would never breach that unwritten rule. But that didn't mean there weren't underlying _feelings_.

It was obvious really: Ichijouji and Yagami were on a first-name basis and usually refrained from using honorifics. They often ate lunch together or met each other at the end of the school day while the students completed their osoji. When they spoke, they often hovered close and exchanged hushed whispers, and Ichijouji smiled more around Yagami than he did around anyone else at Shibaura. Occasionally, Yagami had even been seen to give Ichijouji a ride to or from the school. It really couldn't point to anything other than an intimate relationship, even if it never crossed the unspoken line.

At least, that's what everyone thought until one Thursday afternoon in the middle of their spring semester.

Many of the students of 2-1 lazed about the classroom during their lunch period, chatting with friends in quiet voices, munching from bento boxes, while Ichijouji sat at the desk in the back. Usually, unless he joined Yagami-sensei, he ate while reading or flipping through paperwork, going over his lesson plan for their history lesson after lunch with a soft smile, but today, there was no food. Instead, he sorted through papers and binders, an irritable crease in his forehead.

Koboyashi Hina and Usui Megumi, who always sat at the back of the classroom near the teacher's desk during lunchtime just to be close to him, were debating whether to offer him some of their bento boxes when there was an obnoxiously loud knock on the open doorway.

The room fell silent as everyone turned toward the door, where a cinnamon-haired man leaned against the frame, a large cylindrical food container in one hand. For the longest moment, no one knew what to do and instead remained frozen in place, staring.

But nothing was more surprising than when their sweet-natured teacher released a groan and hissed, "What are you doing here?"

The newcomer didn't look upset, though; he grinned and held up the to-go container. "I've got a special delivery for a forgetful baka named"—he lifted the container to read the label on the side with a dramatic edge to his upbeat voice—"Ichijouji Ken. That's _you_ , isn't it?"

Ichijouji scowled as he leaned back in his chair but motioned the man inside.

He waltzed inside the classroom, a spring in his step, and dropped the food container onto Ichijouji's desk once he reached him. "One order of vegetarian ramen for the baka."

"I'll let those comments slide this time," Ichijouji said in a deadpan voice, his eyes on the container of ramen, "purely because I'm hungry."

Hina and Megumi—and hell, the rest of the students who'd opted to eat their lunch in the classroom—watched the scene unfold curiously. They'd never heard Ichijouji-sensei say anything with so little kindness or understanding in his voice, and it was strange to say the least.

The man with cinnamon hair and a huge grin remained unperturbed as he rested his hands on the edge of the desk and leaned down so their faces were level. "It's fresh. Still hot. Try not to burn yourself this time, Ichijouji. Wouldn't want to damage that pretty little tongue of yours."

Hina gasped, though she quickly tried to cover it up with a small coughing fit when Megumi elbowed her in the ribs.

He pushed away from the desk, a satisfied smirk on his face at Ichijouji's narrow eyes and pink cheeks, and he sent the girls a conspiratorial wink as he headed out of the classroom, hands tucked into his pockets like he didn't have a care in the world.

The minute he was gone, Hina and Megumi jumped to their feet.

"Sensei, sensei," Megumi cried as they approached his desk. "Who was that man?"

"You know him, don't you?" Hina asked, her voice hushed so they didn't draw everyone's attention.

Ichijouji arched an eyebrow at them in a way that could quieten an entire classroom. "Ladies, I simply forgot my lunch today and had food delivered. Why don't you go back to your meals?" Then, he smiled his serene smile—the one that made more than half the student body swoon—and slowly pried open his container of steaming ramen.

Hina frowned, uncertain.

Behind them, a guy shouted, "Are you sure, sensei?" That was Noguchi Hideyo, a bit annoying and always in a foul mood but perhaps a helpful ally in this instance. "He seemed awfully _familiar_ with you for some ramen-delivery guy."

At his desk, Ichijouji bit back his laughter. "He's not just a delivery person, Noguchi-kun. He's the owner and operator."

Noguchi glowered. "Why the hell is the owner of a ramen shop making delivery runs? That's stupid."

"Wait, no," called out Chiba Setsuo, Noguchi's dorky best friend. "It's not a ramen shop—he runs that food cart with his blue Digimon."

" _What?_ " Noguchi said sharply, twisting in his seat to stare at him.

"You didn't recognize him?" Chiba tapped his chin and gave him a smug look. "They did a whole piece on him in _Metropolis_ a few months back. He has carts all over the world—didn't he start up in America?"

But when no one had any answers, the students turned back to Ichijouji, who was too busy eating his ramen and organizing his lesson plan for their upcoming history block.

Hina and Megumi exchanged glances.

They got the distinct impression their teacher was pretending not to pay attention so he didn't have to answer any questions.

Well, they'd just have to get their own answers.

*

At the end of the day, once Ichijouji had gone over their final homeroom meeting, Hina and Megumi walked to the front of the school, their backpacks slung over their shoulders, and spoke in hushed voices as they glanced around. Ichijouji-sensei was still inside the school—he rarely left till long after the students, especially on days when he stopped by the soccer or judo club to lend the players some encouragement.

"Okay," Megumi said, leaning close to her best friend, "how are we doing this?"

Hina nodded, determination tightening her lips. "Well, the swimming club doesn't meet today, so they should've been right behind us, right?"

"What are you two plotting?"

Hina and Megumi pulled back quickly to get a look at the intruder and quickly bowed in apology. "Ah, Ohno-san, you scared us," Hina said quickly.

The girl who glared at them was Ohno Yasue, their homeroom class rep and a bit of a hardass. She didn't have any friends, and she never ate her lunch in the classroom like most of the girls did. She was probably one of the few girls on campus who didn't have it bad for Ichijouji.

Ohno did not look amused. "I asked what you're plotting, Koboyashi-san. Why are you huddling here? You're not going to cause trouble, are you?"

"Trouble?" Megumi cried. "Of course not, Ohno-san."

Then, the door behind Ohno pushed open, and Hina practically sighed in relief when Noguchi and Chiba made their way down the front stairs. Instead of giving Ohno a proper answer, the girls circled around their class rep to call after the two boys before they disappeared.

"Chiba-kun! Noguchi-san!" Megumi yelled.

The pair stopped halfway down the large staircase and turned. "What d'you want?" Noguchi called back, throwing his hands in the air.

Megumi bolted down the stairs to reach them, and when she paused on the same step, she took a moment to catch her breath before flashing them a smile. "Chiba-kun," she said just when Hina stopped closeby, Ohno on her heels. "The man that came by today, the man with the ramen cart—you know who he is, don't you?"

"Even better." Chiba grinned, even as his friend rolled his eyes. "I know where to find him." Then, he glanced between the others. "Say, anybody up for a bowl of ramen?"

He led the way, Noguchi falling into step beside him, and Hina and Megumi hurried to catch up, but to their surprise, Ohno Yasue hardened her features before marching after them, muttering, "Someone has to keep these idiots out of trouble."

The food cart was located only a few blocks from campus on the edge of a nearby park. It wasn't the busiest of locations, but there were several people sitting on stools at a table just to the left of the cart, slurping their ramen in relative silence.

The wooden cart looked to be a semi-permanent fixture, as it was large and entirely open. Bright red paper lanterns with kanji on the sides dangled from the top edge, stools and a narrow bar provided seating right up front, and a chibi-style ramen bowl with a winking face was painted on the wooden slats beneath the name.

But it was who was running the cart that caught their attention.

Inside, the cinnamon-haired man was throwing together an order for the single customer waiting at the makeshift bar, an apron wrapped around his waist and chef's jacket, and next to him, a blue dragon-like Digimon was stirring a large pot.

While Digimon weren't rare—everyone knew about them, after all—not very many people actually had a Digimon partner like this man did. Was he one of the famous Chosen Children from so many years ago, one of the group who had saved the world? Or was he just incredibly lucky?

"Whoa," Noguchi said as they came to a stop not far away. "Hey, Setsuo, what kind of Digimon is that?"

Chiba studied the blue dragon, his mouth pursed, but eventually shook his head. "I know it said in that _Metropolis_ article, but I don't remember."

Noguchi smacked him in the chest. "I thought you said you came here, that's why you knew where it was parked."

But his friend shook his head. "My route home from school is right past this park. He's had his cart here at this time almost every school day for the last couple years."

Megumi's eyes widened. "Was it two years ago? Three?"

Chiba shrugged. "Almost three, I think."

She slapped his arm—his winced and rubbed his upper arm. "You baka! Ichijouji-sensei's first term at Shibaura started three years ago."

Hina nearly melted. "Do you think he set up this location to be close to Ichijouji-sensei?"

"That's so sweet," Megumi agreed.

The class rep came to a stop beside them, her eyes narrowing at the blue Digimon. "Oh, he has a V-mon," she said. "I've never seen one before. They're rare."

The other four turned to stare at her.

"What?" Ohno nodded toward the food cart. "Aren't we going to grab food? I thought that's why we were here."

They moved forward as a group, coming to a stop only a couple meters away, and the cinnamon-haired man looked up as they approached, his face shifting from general cheerfulness to recognition.

Noguchi slid onto one of the stools right there in front, but the others hesitated—until Ohno sat down two seats over and pulled out her wallet. The other three easily filled the rest of the stools.

The chef leaned over the counter toward them with a smirk. "Ichijouji's kids, right? To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Hina bit her lip before resting an elbow on the bar and swallowing down her nervousness. "How do you know Ichijouji-sensei?" She hesitated again, then added, "It's just, you seemed so familiar with him, but he said you were just the owner of a ramen shop and he'd forgotten his lunch."

Noguchi pointed at the man with narrow eyes. "Yeah, but food carts don't make deliveries. And even if they did, the owner of a worldwide food chain wouldn't make them personally."

Megumi jutted out her elbow, catching him in the ribs, and sent him a glare before turning to the now very amused owner. "We don't mean to bother you. It's just…"

On her other side, Chiba spoke before she could regain her train of thought: "You're famous. And we've never seen Ichijouji-sensei act so weird. He's normally so…"

"Kind-hearted?" the man suggested with a raised eyebrow. When they each slowly began to nod, he turned his attention to Ohno, who'd remained silent, clutching her wallet. "Anything you wanna add?"

The class rep assessed him with skeptical eyes. "I only came for the ramen."

The man burst out laughing as he slid the nearest menu toward her. "We specialize in miso ramen," he said between chuckles. "Let me know what you want, and we'll whip it together for you. Right, V-mon?"

He threw a look over his shoulder, and the blue Digimon gave him a thumbs-up and a "Right, Daisuke!"

Thick, cinnamon-colored hair bristling with movement, he turned back to the group. "You guys want anything? Or are you just here to interrogate me on behalf of your teacher?"

Hina immediately shook her head. "No, no, we're not here on his behalf. Honestly, I don't think he'd be happy if he knew we were asking you about this."

He sent her an amused grin, then said, "All right, get comfortable. I'll make you guys some ramen on the house and tell you a story."

The four of them exchanged glances and agreed. Ohno frowned down at the wallet still in her hand.

"Do you have any idea who I am?" the ramen shop owner asked as he shifted around ingredients.

Chiba, of course, was the one to answer: "I read the article about you in _Metropolis_ a few months ago. You studied in America a while back, and then you and your Digimon started up this ramen chain there and only came back to Tokyo a couple years ago. It really took off, didn't it?"

His best friend scowled. "Aren't you rich then? Why are you running one of the food carts all by yourself when you could be counting your cash?"

The man snorted, pausing in the middle of his work. "You obviously have no idea what it entails to run a worldwide business chain—though that's not to say I don't have help in the management department." He laughed as he grabbed a few packets of noodles. "Trust me, when it took off in America, I had to completely relearn how to handle it. When it was just one cart, just me and V-mon going up and down the streets of New York City, it was a hell of a lot easier." He leaned back to flash them a grin. "But that's exactly why I still run one of these personally. It makes it feel simple, and I like doing it. I like watching people enjoy the food. That's why I wanted to do this in the first place—to make people happy."

Despite the elaborate, heartfelt answer, Noguchi didn't stop scowling, skeptical.

"Anyway," the man said after a quiet minute, "yeah, my business is famous, but that's not what I meant." He sent a quick glance toward the blue Digimon, who was now washing dishes in the back. "How much do you know about Digimon? And the Digital World?"

Silence fell over the five students.

Of the group, Chiba was probably the most interested in the different kinds of Digimon, but they had been little kids the last time there had been some big thing with the Digital World. Yeah, the Digimon were in the Real World and they were in the news all the time, but that didn't mean anyone knew what had happened throughout the years. Not really.

"V-mon is an ancient Digimon." It was Ohno Yasue who spoke, her voice quiet but calm. "From what I've read, they're incredibly rare, and the only person I've ever heard of who had one for a partner was one of the kids who saved the world."

The man looked up at her, surprise written on his face, but that quickly transformed into a big smile. "Very smart." He moved away from his work to approach her and offered his hand. "Name?"

She shook his hand with a proud smile. "Ohno Yasue. Class representative for 2-1."

"Ah, Ohno- _sama_ , what an honor to meet you." He cracked a grin.

Ohno stiffened at his teasing. "And yours?"

His grin only widened. "Motomiya Daisuke. Legendary Hero. Bearer of the Digimentals of Courage and Friendship…and sometimes Miracles, but that's a whole other story." He winked at her and turned back to making their food. "And let's not forget ramen connoisseur."

The group fell silent.

Until Hina murmured, "Wow."

"We, uh, weren't expecting that," Chiba admitted, scratching at his temple.

"You don't expect the person making your ramen to be a connoisseur?" he called out to them, not looking up, amusement lacing his voice.

"Motomiya-san, how do you know Ichijouji-sensei?" Megumi asked, leaning forward.

He looked up at that, raising an eyebrow. "You guys really don't know anything about Digimon, do you?" And when no one answered, he shook his head in exasperation. "Gimme a sec."

Not long later, he slid five bowls down the bartop and rested on the other side of the counter, elbows on the wood, hands clasped under his chin, while they began to eat.

Hina paused after her first bite. "Wow," she said, looking up at him with wide eyes. "This is amazing."

Motomiya grinned. "It better be. That's award-winning ramen, I'll have you know."

They gobbled down their food while he watched, a pleased smile on his face, until Chiba paused in the middle of lifting his spoon.

"Doesn't this mean it's storytime?" he asked, frowning at the self-proclaimed ramen connoisseur. "You said you'd tell us…"

Motomiya released a large laugh. "Yeah, yeah, kid. It's storytime." And he shifted, getting a little more comfortable, before diving in.

"Let's see. Where to start?" He rubbed at the back of his neck thoughtfully, then clapped his hands—Ohno jumped, splattering droplets of broth on the counter—and said, "Once upon a time, there was a young boy who didn't have any friends. He was lonely, and he made some dumb decisions, some stupid mistakes. But every time he messed something up, he tried his hardest to fix things, to make things right. And then he—well, _I_ —met Ichijouji." Motomiya laughed, mouth twisted in a reminiscent smile. "And he was lonely too, and he'd made, well, probably some _worse_ mistakes, but it wasn't his fault. And really, no one tried harder than Ken to make amends, and no one deserved friendship more than Ken."

"You knew Ichijouji-sensei as kids?" Hina asked.

"Well, yeah." Motomiya grinned. "He became my best friend. Plus there was all that saving-the-world business too."

"Wait a minute," Noguchi snapped, holding up his hand. "Are you saying that our teacher was a…well, wait a sec, what the hell are you guys called?"

Motomiya cocked an eyebrow, mouth curving up in amusement. "A Chosen Child is the technical term, though that hardly seems fitting anymore. And yeah, he was. _Is_." Then, he scoffed. "Man, how has he not told you about Wormmon?"

That caught Ohno's attention. "Ichijouji-sensei has a Wormmon? The cute little caterpillar Digimon?"

The interior of the ramen cart echoed with laughter. "Damn, Ohno-sama, you'll make him blush and he's not even here."

She frowned, and the group continued to eat their ramen in companionable silence, each digesting the new information about a teacher they'd known for over a year. A teacher who had kept secret a huge part of his life. It'd be like finding out he was married even though he never wore a ring.

Hina's eyes widened. "Wait, is Ichijouji-sensei married?"

Motomiya choked, spluttering with his laughter. "No," he finally managed after calming down. "No, not possible."

Then, she glanced at her best friend, and Megumi offered her an encouraging smile in response. "And what about you, Motomiya-san? Are you spoken for?"

He snickered at her wording. "I speak for myself, thanks, but if you're asking if I'm married, that's a definite no." Then, he leaned closer, a little smirk on his lips. "Why do you ask, miss…?"

"Koboyashi Hina." She blushed and quickly averted her eyes. "It's just, you were so familiar with Sensei. It seemed _intimate_."

Noguchi scoffed. "Don't mince words, Koboyashi-san." Then, he focused his attention on Motomiya. "You were hitting on our teacher."

The ramen cart owner assessed him with a small smile. "I like people who aren't afraid to say what they mean. You're…?"

This time, Noguchi was the one who extended his hand. "Noguchi Hideyo."

"All right, Noguchi." Motomiya shook his hand with a laugh. "Why do you think I was hitting on your teacher? Surely friends can tease each other." He glanced at Chiba, then back to Noguchi and raised an eyebrow. "Right?"

Chiba chuckled. The assessment was correct—Noguchi often made Chiba the butt of his jokes, yet they remained the best of friends.

But Noguchi pursed his lips. "I don't tease my friends by telling them they have a pretty tongue, thanks."

Motomiya shrugs. "Yeah, but something tells me you've never had a friend like Ichijouji. You know he's one of the smartest people I've ever met? He was a child prodigy, but he never wanted that—he only ever wanted to be normal, to have friends and a home." A soft smile spread across his face, decidedly different from all the bemused smirks and overzealous grins he'd donned previously. "And he certainly has a way with words, don't you think?"

He directed a pointed look at Hina, then at Megumi—Hina was the one to break, blushing as she buried her face in her hair.

"You know, I've heard," Motomiya continues, inclining his head toward the girls, "that Ichijouji has quite the fan club at Shibaura."

Hina gasped. "He knows?" She clamped her eyes shut and covered her flushed cheeks with her hands. "We never wanted to make him uncomfortable or anything. He's just so…"

Motomiya smirked like he could fill in the blanks without any assistance, but instead, he said, "Well, rest assured, I'm sure the baka is completely oblivious to how attractive people find him. He usually is. But your teacher isn't the _only_ connection I have there."

They all stared at him.

Well, all of them except Ohno Yasue, who drained her ramen bowl and laid a few notes on the counter, even though he'd insisted their meal was on the house. "Thank you for the food, Motomiya-san," she said as she slid from the stool and picked up her bag again. "Some of the best ramen I've ever had."

He flashed her a smile. "Very kind of you, Ohno-sama."

She turned to the other four with a short nod. "I'll see everyone tomorrow." Then, she slung her bag over her shoulder and headed back the way they came, as she lived in the opposite direction.

When she was gone, Motomiya turned back to Noguchi. "Well, Noguchi, for the sake of argument," he said, tapping a finger against the counter, "let's say I _was_ flirting with your Ichijouji-sensei. What then? Is that a problem?"

Noguchi shot him a scowl. "Who says you're good enough for Ichijouji-sensei?"

But instead of being offended, Motomiya burst into laughter, leaning back and clutching his side like it was the funniest joke he'd heard all week, and when he recovered, he said, "As far as I'm concerned, _no one_ is good enough for Ichijouji," in a soft voice. "So yeah, I suppose you've got me there."

Noguchi eyed him warily after that, but the group finished their ramen and hesitantly stood to head out.

"I'm Chiba Setsuo," Chiba said, shoving his hand over the counter, and Motomiya shook it with a grin. "Thanks for the ramen, and thanks for telling us a little about Ichijouji-sensei. Maybe—I mean, if you have time—we could stop by again for more stories?"

"I'd like that, Chiba-san," Motomiya said.

Chiba grinned and gave him a deep bow. "Until next time then," and he and Noguchi turned to head out, leaving only Hina and Megumi standing beside the ramen cart.

Motomiya watched the two curiously before saying, "Why do I get the impression you two are planning something?"

Lips pursed, Megumi studied him for a moment as Hina pulled out her wallet to press a few notes to the counter. "Usui Megumi," she supplied, as the only one of them who had yet to introduce themself. "The ramen was wonderful, thank you. And if you ever decide to stop by the classroom again to _not_ flirt with our teacher, I'm sure Ichijouji-sensei wouldn't mind."

Amusement crept up Motomiya's face. "How kind of you to offer your approval, Usui-san."

As the girls walked away, Hina glanced back to catch a glimpse of Motomiya chatting and laughing animatedly with his blue Digimon as they cleaned their empty ramen bowls. "Do you think he'll stop by again?"

Megumi sent her best friend a grin. "Definitely."

*

Motomiya didn't show up at lunch the next day, even though Hina and Megumi spent their lunch constantly looking up at the classroom door from their regular seats near Ichijouji's desk just in case.

He didn't show up the next day either, and then it was the weekend.

But Monday, only five minutes into their lunch break, a heavy knock sounded from the doorway, and Motomiya stood there with a little grin, his arms crossed, a sack of something—something that smelled delicious—dangling from one hand.

Ichijouji looked up from his paperwork, a half-eaten rice ball in one hand, and glared. This time, though, he remained silent until Motomiya dropped the sack on his desk. "What's this?"

Motomiya dropped onto the edge of the desk. "Something told me you'd appreciate a hot meal today."

From their spot not far away, Hina and Megumi giggled, and when Motomiya caught their eye and winked, their giggles grew louder.

Ichijouji did not look pleased.

"What?" Motomiya asked, cocking an eyebrow. "Are you telling me you have more than a rice ball or two to eat today?"

Their teacher's mouth snapped shut.

"That's what I thought," Motomiya said with a smug tone. "So eat the food I brought you and don't complain."

Despite an aggravated grumble, Ichijouji poked at the sack a bit before finally opening it. "I'm thirty-two years old," he said as he pulled out a big container of ramen, "and you're still micromanaging my meals."

The self-proclaimed ramen connoisseur raised an eyebrow. "I wouldn't have to if you managed them in the first place, Ichijouji. You can't survive on rice balls."

Their teacher scoffed. "They're hardly the only thing I eat."

"I'm well aware of your poor eating habits," Motomiya said in a deadpan voice. "I've been trying to correct them for years, but the only way to fix them is to literally shove the food in your face."

Ichijouji sent him a quick glare, even as he pulled out a pair of chopsticks. "Ramen is hardly a healthy meal choice."

His friend scoffed. "Next time, I'll bring you a salad too. How's that?"

But their teacher didn't look too pleased with his wording. "I didn't realize there'd be a next time, Motomiya."

He shrugged. "Yeah, well, you've always been a bit naive."

Hina and Megumi burst into giggles again—the two men bantered like an old married couple. Any thoughts of Ichijouji-sensei pairing off with Yagami-sensei were officially banished. Their teacher obviously belonged with this Motomiya fellow.

"See, Ken?" he said, gesturing toward the two girls. " _They_ like having me visit, even if you don't."

Before Ichijouji had the chance to respond, their class rep entered the room, her history textbook in her arms. She paused when she caught sight of Motomiya, then continued to her seat to drop off her book.

A moment later, she paused beside the teacher's desk and bowed to the two men. "It's good to see you, Motomiya-san. Thanks again for the ramen."

He grinned when she stood straight. "Good to see you too, Ohno-sama."

She flushed at the over-the-top honorific but nodded all the same.

"What did I tell you, Ichijouji?" Motomiya said, sending their teacher a sly look. "She said it's good to see me—and Ohno-sama is very smart, so she must know what she's talking about."

Instead of responding, Ichijouji leaned over his desk, shoving a hand through his gorgeous, shoulder-length hair with a groan.

This only seemed to make Motomiya more pleased. "Don't mind him," he said to Ohno in a conspiratorial whisper. "He gets dramatic when he knows I'm right." He cast a glance down at Ichijouji. "What time's lunch end?"

"We still have fifteen minutes," Ohno answered, as their teacher was too busy grumbling into his ramen.

"You should stay!" Megumi shouted, pushing up to her feet. "Will you tell us more about the Digital World?"

That made Ichijouji stop.

"Daisuke," he said in a quiet voice, catching his friend's attention, "shouldn't you get back to your job?"

But Motomiya brushed off his concern. "Nah, V-mon's got it. And he knows he can close if he needs to, but it's not like we get much business there around this time."

Megumi grinned. "So you'll stay?"

He chuckled. "Only because you asked so nicely, Usui-san."

At the desk, Ichijouji pursed his lips. "Motomiya, why do you know my students' names?" There was a dangerous tone to his voice that was rarely heard at Shibaura High School, but while students would shrink from that tone on the rare occasions he used it, Motomiya ignored it without a thought for his well-being.

The three girls hovered around the desk, along with several of the other students, and waited while Motomiya got more comfortable.

"Well, what do you want to know, ladies? Do you want to hear about the time we saved a bus full of kids? Or when we smashed some bugs in a house built for giants? Or maybe when we pulled a _Yu-Gi-Oh_ move and defeated the bad guy with the power of friendship?"

Ichijouji snorted into his ramen.

Then, Motomiya sent the girls a sly smile. "Or I could tell you about the time I pushed this dumbass down a hill."

Their teacher immediately stilled, and when he looked up, his eyes were slits. "Don't you dare."

He raised his hands in defeat. "Fine, fine."

"And as I recall, you didn't just push me—you _rode_ me down that hill."

Ichijouji didn't seem to realize the implications of his wording until Motomiya's mouth twisted into the biggest smirk the girls had ever seen. He instantly flushed.

" _You rode our teacher down a hill?!_ "

Everyone turned toward the front of the classroom, where Noguchi and Chiba had just entered.

Motomiya laughed. "Ah, Noguchi. Always refreshing to talk to you."

A _thump_ sounded at the desk as Ichijouji slapped his hand against the top. "Do you know all of my students now?" he hissed.

"Just the fun ones."

Chiba forced his way through the crowd, Noguchi on his heels. "Motomiya-san," he said, almost out of breath with excitement, "you're telling stories about the Digital World?"

He crossed his arms over his chest in an easy sort of pose and smiled. "Let me tell you about the time we threw some salt and pepper in a spider's face."

Despite his irritation, Ichijouji actually smiled at that and continued to eat the no-longer-steaming ramen.

"Okay, this was before Ichijouji decided he wasn't too cool to be my friend"—a couple students snickered—"so he wasn't part of the team yet. But we all got an email from this mysterious woman who'd been sending phoney Digimon after us, inviting us to some place called the Giga House. _This_ guy showed up at the same time we did and insisted, since it was obviously a trap, we should all go home and let him take care of it. Did you guys know your teacher's stubborn as hell when he sets his mind to it?"

Lips pursed, Ichijouji pushed away the remnants of his food and watched Motomiya, who was still sitting on his desk, tell the story.

"Well, what he didn't realize is that I'm _far_ more stubborn than he is." Motomiya sent him a little smile. "So the six of us went inside in groups of three, me and Ichijouji and our friend Iori in the first group. We had to break in, of course. No way to turn the doorknob. And we were immediately attacked by a bunch of insect Digimon—"

"Gokimon," Ichijouji inserted.

"Right, right," he said with a nod. "Cockroaches. They crawled out of the kitchen sink! And Ichijouji went swimming in a washing machine—"

"Motomiya," their teacher growled, "I got electrocuted and almost drowned."

"Yeah, but Sabmarimon got you out in time." Motomiya rolled his eyes. "See? He's so dramatic."

Hina smiled, repressing her giggles, but many of the other students laughed outright.

"So we escaped by climbing through the vents, and when we found that bitch—"

" _Daisuke!_ "

He winced. "Gomen."

The small crowd of students burst into laughter.

"Anyway," Motomiya continued, his voice more subdued, "we finally found that creepy woman, and she was just playing a flute—and then we realized that the song she was playing let her control all the insect Digimon…" His words faded, and he glanced at Ichijouji, hesitant.

"You can say it," he said in a quiet voice. "Stingmon tried to kill us."

"And Digmon," Motomiya said, trying to be encouraging before he turned back to the class. "She turned our Digimon against us—well, not XV-mon because XV-mon's way too cool to be controlled by some silly musical instrument." His eyes darted toward Ichijouji, who cracked a small smile. "And Digmon drilled the floor right out from under us, and we fell into a humongous spiderweb. And this giant spider—"

"Dokugumon," Ichijouji supplied.

"—was crawling toward us, and we were stuck. Iori tried to reach the others, but they had problems of their own, so it was up to me to come up with a plan."

Ichijouji scoffed. "It was Iori-kun who came up with the idea to use the air conditioner."

"Yeah, but—"

"And I'm the one who thought to kick the hunk of wood at the button to turn it on."

"Yes," Motomiya said, rolling his eyes, "but I executed the move perfectly."

Ichijouji pinched the bridge of his nose but remained silent.

"And it worked perfectly."

"A short-lived victory."

Motomiya frowned. "Okay, true, but you need to stop being a spoilsport. Sure, Stingmon and Digmon cornered us inside a dresser drawer and we nearly died until Miyako did that fancy computer shit—"

He fell silent as the bell rang, and Ichijouji breathed a sigh of relief before sliding the lid on the remainder of his ramen and slipping it back into the sack. Then, he rose from the desk chair and shoved the sack into Motomiya's hands before he could protest.

"Thanks for that very one-sided interpretation of our childhood adventures, Motomiya," he said, "but I have to actually teach class now, and you need to get back to work like an actual business owner."

But Motomiya grinned at him. "Actually, being the business owner means I have complete control over my work hours. I don't even have to do anything since I have an amazing business associate who handles everything. I could stay home in my underwear all day."

Ichijouji blinked at him. "Yes, well, we both know that would bore you."

"Depends." But he finally pushed away from the edge of the desk, sack in hand, and prodded him in the ribs. "Wouldn't be boring with the right company." He sent him a little smirk before moving through the students toward the exit. "Till next time!" he called out as he slipped through the door.

The class turned to look at Ichijouji, whose cheeks were flushed pink. Hina and Megumi shared pleased glances, but the moment Ichijouji recovered, everyone bolted to their seats for the lesson. He was not in the mood to dawdle.

*

Motomiya Daisuke visited again on Wednesday, a day when Ichijouji-sensei must have been in a hurry to leave that morning and only had a beaten-up box of Pretz—and a box of stale pretzel sticks hardly looked like an appetizing lunch.

Ichijouji was in a foul mood during their morning homeroom, which was always a rare occurrence, and for the first time, he actually seemed pleased when Motomiya, for once dressed in everyday clothes, came by with two containers from his ramen cart tucked under one arm at lunchtime. He was particularly pleased to find that, in addition to the vegetarian ramen Motomiya always brought, there was a fresh spinach salad with sesame dressing.

Hina bit her lip.

That spinach goma-ae had to be homemade. Motomiya didn't have it on his menu when they'd been there a week ago, and the odds he'd updated the menu in that time were slim.

Hina wasn't the only one to notice.

While Motomiya stole one of the student chairs and kicked his feet up on the teacher's desk, Noguchi glowered at him. "Did you change your menu or something?"

Motomiya sent him an amused glance. "Nah."

"You know…" Noguchi sat down on one of the nearest desks, his feet resting on the chair, and crossed his arms. "You don't dress like you're rich. Are we sure you're the guy from that magazine article?"

But Chiba nudges his friend. "It's him, I'm sure of it."

"Yeah?" Noguchi scoffs. "Then why does he dress like he's a 2000s anime character?"

This time, Motomiya didn't look too pleased with the turn of conversation. Ichijouji, on the other hand, burst into laughter and nearly choked on a bite of spinach.

Motomiya sat up, planting his feet on the floor. "I'll have you know, vests are cool."

Noguchi cocked an eyebrow.

But it was Ichijouji who spoke, stifling his laughter: "Motomiya, vests aren't cool. Frankly, you've never had a stylish bone in your body."

His friend turned his glare on him. "Says the guy who wears cardigans and loafers all the time."

Ichijouji held Motomiya's gaze but lowered his voice. "And do I not look good in them?"

He scowled. "That's not a fair question."

"Fair or not, you have to have an opinion—since you have an opinion on everything else."

For the first time, a light blush rose to Motomiya's cheeks. "You know you look good in everything."

And Ichijouji returned to his salad with a satisfied little smirk.

Hina leaned over to grab Megumi's shoulder, but her best friend was already smacking at her arm in excitement. They exchanged big grins before scooting closer to the couple.

"Motomiya-san," Megumi said, grabbing his attention, "will you tell us a story today? Can you tell us about how you two met? Was it because of the Digimon?" 

He watches her with a small frown for a moment before starting in a much quieter voice than when he told his previous story: "Kind of, but not really. You know how I told you Ichijouji was a child prodigy? He was good at everything—chess, judo, video games, math, but one of the things he was best at was soccer."

Ichijouji had paused in the middle of eating to listen to the story with a contemplative look on his face, but he released a quiet breath and took another bite.

"We went to different schools, and we were both team captain. His team was the previous year's champion, but we hadn't played against each other because Odaiba lost early in the season—that was _before_ I was captain. So I was pretty excited when we were set to play Tamachi and I'd get to play against him—he was a legend, insanely talented, a local celebrity—but then he didn't show."

Motomiya relaxed again, crossing one leg over the other. "The team was still good, of course, but we got ahead, and then at the halfway point, a car pulls up to the curb and drops off _this_ guy. And the moment he was in the match, everything changed. He kicked my ass—"

" _Language_ ," Ichijouji hissed.

"—and it was awesome! Odaiba lost horribly, but I managed to get the drop on him and stop him from scoring one final goal, so that was pretty cool."

"Did you become friends after that?" Hina asked, leaning forward.

But Motomiya laughed. "Not even close. That took months of convincing and wearing him down. He thought he didn't _need_ friends—what a baka."

Their teacher sent him a scowl, but Motomiya didn't seem to notice—until he said, "Yes, says the person who was so desperate for friendship he wouldn't stop throwing himself at Hikari."

"I was eleven."

Ichijouji narrowed his eyes. "So was I."

At the bitter tone in his voice, Motomiya scooted his chair closer and poked at his arm till he met his eyes. "Hey." But this time, his voice was soft. "You figured things out and got better."

He nodded stiffly. "As did you," he admitted in a quiet voice, obviously still miffed but willing to accept the olive branch.

They stared at each other for a long minute, a silent conversation passing between them, and Hina and Megumi met each other's gleeful eyes.

Then, Motomiya stood up, taking a moment to slide the chair back to its desk, and pressed a lingering hand on Ichijouji's shoulder. "I should head out. Don't want to leave V-mon to himself for too long. He'll probably burn down the cart." And he leaned down to whisper something in his ear—something that made a deep blush spread across his pale cheeks. "See you later, Ichijouji," he said when he pulled away.

Even after he was gone, Ichijouji stayed frozen at the desk, his cheeks flushed.

"Ichijouji-sensei?" Hina called when he didn't move after the bell rang, signaling the start of class. "You okay?"

He inhaled slowly, then smiled at her. "Ah, yes, Koboyashi-san, I'm all right."

"Are you…?" She hesitated. "Do you like Motomiya-san?"

He sent her a strange look. "Of course I like him. As ridiculous as he is, he's my best friend."

Hina frowned.

Beside her, Megumi scoffed. "You know that's not what she meant, Sensei. Motomiya-san obviously likes you more than a friend. A lot more. It wouldn't be crazy for you to reciprocate."

Ichijouji heaved a sigh. "Usui-san, this is hardly an appropriate conversation for school."

"Wait a sec." Noguchi had an oddly thoughtful look on his face. "Did you say that he had a crush on _Hikari_? As in _Yagami_ Hikari? _Yagami-sensei_?"

Finally, Ichijouji rose from the desk and moved toward the front of the room. "All right, class, let's start the lesson…"

*

The next time Motomiya joined the class for lunch, all the students of 2-1 stayed in the room so they could listen to his stories—stories Ichijouji-sensei still refused to elaborate on. He wouldn't even tell them about his Digimon partner.

" _Motomiya-san! Motomiya-san!_ "

The voices shouted and clamored the moment he entered the room, no longer waiting for an invitation. He slid the container of ramen—and a salad, of course—to Ichijouji and plopped down on the edge of the desk to face the crowd already surrounding him.

"Tell us about the Digital World!"

"How did you defeat Vamdemon?"

"Do you still go to the Digital World? What's it like now?"

"How do Digimon reproduce? Do they have sex?"

"What happens to them when they die?"

But it was Megumi's question that caught him off guard: "When did you and Ichijouji-sensei become friends?"

Motomiya's eyes twinkled as he met her gaze, and when he spoke, the classroom fell silent: "I dunno, Ichijouji- _sensei_ ," he said, casting a meaningful glance at his friend, "when _did_ we become friends?"

Their teacher scowled. "Not when _you_ think we became friends."

He sighed. "Oh, but Keeen! You can't tease them like that."

"Fine." Ichijouji waved his concerns away and pulled his bowl of ramen closer. "Tell them _your_ version, and then I can explain why you're wrong."

Motomiya had a smirk on his face as he crossed his arms. "Obviously, he took a lot of convincing," he said, turning back to the class. "It was a slow process, but probably the most important moment in that process was when our Digimon first Jogress-evolved."

"Jogress? What's Jogress?"

"That's when two Digimon fuse together to become more powerful," Chiba said a few desks over, then he turned a confused frown toward Motomiya. "But why would that make you guys friends?"

"There's this weird thing about Jogress," Motomiya continued with a shrug. "At least with ours anyway, since none of the others had the same thing happen. It's not just the Digimon that merge—you have to be completely in sync for it to work." His voice was quieter now, no longer teasing. "The first time XV-mon and Stingmon Jogress-evolved, it was because we finally understood each other. We…well, I _think_ Ichijouji finally realized I wasn't going to let him do everything on his own and that, even if we weren't really friends yet, I'd always be there for him, by his side."

Megumi gripped Hina's wrist, and the girls exchanged wide eyes, but they were even happier the second they caught sight of their teacher.

Almost hidden behind Motomiya, Ichijouji-sensei had paused in the middle of eating his ramen, a soft reminiscent smile on his face. He cast one last glance at his friend's back before returning to his food.

Hina sighed.

They were adorable.

They were utterly perfect for each other.

How in the world did they not realize? Or rather, how did Ichijouji not realize?

"What sort of Digimon did you make with the Jogress?" Chiba asked.

Then, Motomiya grinned. "Paildramon. A totally badass dragon Digimon. Powerful like XV-mon but with Stingmon's defensive armor. He beat Okuwamon and then came to save us before the Kaiser's base blew us up."

After a beat of silence, Noguchi shifted in his seat. "Who's the Kaiser?"

Motomiya frowned at that, and when he spoke, he wasn't excited anymore. "Someone who needed our help." Then, he cleared his throat and turned back to Ichijouji. "Well? How wrong am I?"

Their teacher had moved on to what looked like a cucumber salad, but he set down his chopsticks and smiled at his friend. "Honestly, I'm not sure you're wrong at all." He looked like he wanted to say more, to do more, but for a long moment, they just stared at each other, a silent conversation passing between their locked eyes.

Hina laced her fingers with Megumi's and squeezed, trying to repress the excitement.

"Well," Motomiya said eventually, his voice heavy with emotion, "it's not every day you feel someone else's heart beat in time with yours."

Megumi actually squealed at that—and quickly slapped her hand over her mouth. Despite the strange quiet in the room, the girls burst into giggles.

He sent them an amused smile and directed his attention back to the room—everyone was staring at them, curiosity and amusement and wonder written on their faces. "Well, what else did you guys want to know?"

Then, the students started speaking, each talking louder than the others to be heard.

Motomiya simply laughed and tried to answer their questions as well as he could, but nearby, Hina and Megumi's curiosity was satisfied.

The look that had passed between them.

The look that Ichijouji had worn at the end of Motomiya's explanation.

Yes, Motomiya's feelings were definitely reciprocated. It was obvious. And all they really needed now was a proper push in the right direction.

And Hina and Megumi were determined to be the ones pushing them.

*

The following Saturday, Motomiya waltzed into the classroom wearing a faded blue soccer jersey and black gym shorts while Ichijouji-sensei was starting the final five-minute homeroom meeting. He had a soccer ball under one arm and a sack of food, stuffed, even overflowing, dangling from the other hand. The blue Digimon, V-mon, marched in behind him, a green caterpillar sitting atop his head.

Ichijouji scowled at them. "Motomiya, what in the world are you doing?"

But the caterpillar Digimon leaped from V-mon's head and scurried to the front of the classroom, and Ichijouji bent down to lift him into his arms. "Daisuke thought it'd be fun to hang out at the park today. You haven't made time to play soccer in a while, Ken-chan. Classes end early on Saturdays, right?"

His face softened. "Of course, Wormmon. That sounds wonderful. Just give me a couple minutes to finish up here."

"So," Noguchi said, eyes flitting between the two adults, "you two are going on a date?"

Motomiya snickered from the doorway. "You consider kicking a soccer ball around the park a date, Noguchi? Have you ever been on a real date?"

The class burst into laughter, and Noguchi glowered at him, cheeks heating up.

But being only one seat over, Hina could hear Noguchi mutter, "The minute you add a picnic to it, it's a date," under his breath.

"That wasn't very nice, Daisuke," Ichijouji said in a quiet voice when he carried Wormmon back toward the door.

But V-mon stole the show when he threw his arms around Ichijouji and Wormmon and cried, "Ken! I haven't seen you since yesterday."

And Ichijouji laughed as he knelt down to give V-mon a hug as well. "I'm sorry, Vee. But you got to spend all morning with Daisuke and Wormmon, right?"

"Yes!" The blue Digimon grinned, much like his partner. "We're gonna play soccer. You're coming with us, right?"

"I will in a little bit." He smiled as Wormmon crawled out of his arms and back on top of V-mon's head. "Can you wait for me outside the classroom?"

He directed the question at the Digimon, but Motomiya nudged them out the door again.

The class quickly finished their final homeroom meeting, and Ichijouji moved to the back of the room to gather his binder and paperwork while the students filed out of the room.

When Hina and Megumi exited the classroom, Noguchi and Chiba were already chatting animatedly with Motomiya and the two Digimon a few feet from the door while Motomiya juggled the soccer ball on the tip of his sneaker.

"Oh, come on." He caught the ball on his foot and balanced it there on the tip. "You're telling me you've never been curious about the Digimon?"

Noguchi scowled at him while his best friend dropped to his knees to ask V-mon and Wormmon questions. "No."

Motomiya raised an eyebrow, then flung the soccer ball up into the air, high enough it almost hit the ceiling before dropping down. He slid to the right, catching it on the top of his head, then juggled it back and forth between his head and shoulders while Noguchi practically glared at him.

"How in the world did you manage to convince Ichijouji-sensei to go on a date?" he asked, crossing his arms. "You act like a child."

"You _are_ a child." The ball bounced on his head a couple more times before Motomiya snatched it from the air with a laugh. "And what makes you so sure this is a date?"

Noguchi heaved a sigh as the girls wandered closer. "You brought food. Which means you're going to have a picnic at the park. That's automatically a date."

Motomiya raised an eyebrow, amused. "Even with our Digimon there?"

He cast one glance at the Digimon—Wormmon was now on the floor instead of V-mon's head, but he still hovered close to the blue dragon Digimon, a safe distance from everyone else. "Yes."

"Is it true?" Megumi asked, pushing forward. "You're taking Ichijouji-sensei on a date?"

Hina stood beside her friend, equally hopeful.

Motomiya shrugged and dropped the ball to his feet again, and he began bouncing it back and forth between his knees and toes.

Not a moment later, Ichijouji slipped out of the classroom, his things packed into a satchel slung over his shoulder. The moment he caught sight of his friend, he sighed. "If you break a window, they'll take it out of my paycheck, Motomiya."

He propelled the ball back into his arms again and turned to him with a grin. "I haven't broken a window in years."

Ichijouji's eyes narrowed. "I seem to recall you breaking a window with that very ball only three weeks ago."

"I fixed it!"

He scoffed. "You paid someone to replace the glass—that's not the same thing as _you_ fixing it." But then he knelt down beside the Digimon and lifted Wormmon into his arms. "Let's go. Though I'm hardly dressed to play."

Motomiya grabbed the sack of food from the floor by the wall, then dragged V-mon—after Chiba said a quick goodbye to the Digimon—up onto his shoulders, and he and Ichijouji started walking down the hallway together, arms brushing against each other. "You can't deny me the pleasure of getting you dirty, Ichijouji. I won't stand for it," he said as their voices faded.

Hina, Megumi, Noguchi, and Chiba all hovered in the hallway as the duo walked away.

"Well, aren't you going to follow them?"

The four turned to find an expectant class rep behind them, hands on her hips.

"Ah, Ohno-san," Hina said, glancing back toward the now-distant figures of Ichijouji and Motomiya. "Wouldn't that be a bit invasive?"

She shrugged. "But you want to know if they're actually going on a date, don't you?"

Chiba cleared his throat. "You know, they might go to the park where Motomiya-san has his ramen cart. And it wouldn't be weird for us to just happen to go by there. I mean, especially me since I live there."

Ohno's eyes lit up. "Do you think the ramen cart is closed since he's not there? Or does he have another employee at that location?"

With a shrug, Noguchi tugged his backpack over both shoulders. "Only one way to find out."

*

When the group arrived at the park, they were pleased to see the ramen cart was indeed open and two university-aged guys were working inside, but they didn't see Ichijouji, Motomiya, or the Digimon anywhere—and they should've arrived first.

Either way, Ohno slipped into a seat at the bar and immediately ordered food. She really was there just for the ramen.

Hina and Megumi exchanged glances before shrugging and joining her. It was, after all, some of the best ramen they'd ever had. Chiba joined them too, and Noguchi grabbed a chair with an irritated groan.

The workers greeted them and took their orders, but it wasn't until several minutes later, when they were each devouring a steaming bowl of ramen, that they heard a distinctive shout from the park itself.

" _Bullshit, Ichijouji!_ You can't be _this_ out of practice."

When they turned to look, Ichijouji and Motomiya were weaving around each other, one of them dribbling the ball, the other stealing it, then the reverse. But it was obvious Motomiya was slowly steering them toward his goal, and their teacher was becoming increasingly frustrated.

Somehow, they'd arrived at the park and had already been playing for a while before the teens had noticed them.

"Hmm," Chiba said, frowning. "You know, I always figured Sensei was really good at soccer with the way I've seen him talk to the soccer club and what Motomiya-san said a couple weeks ago. It really sounded like he knows what he's doing."

But as Motomiya dribbled the ball toward the net, evading the other man's attempts to block, Ichijouji slid to his other side, slipped a foot between Motomiya's, and nudged the ball out of his reach. With a twist and some fancy footwork they couldn't see from far away, Ichijouji had control of the ball and was racing down the pitch, Motomiya on his heels. It was a small pitch, and not even halfway across, Ichijouji took aim and sent the ball spinning into the net.

Motomiya stumbled to a stop beside him and bent over, hands on his knees, breathing hard, and they exchanged a few lines while, on the opposite side of the pitch, both V-mon and Wormmon cheered loudly.

"Well," Noguchi said, "I'd say he _does_ know what he's doing. Sensei was toying with him." He actually looked impressed.

The two of them played for maybe ten more minutes before Motomiya, looking particularly irritated at having scored only a third of the goals, grabbed the ball and started toward the ramen cart with the ball hooked under one arm. Ichijouji moved to his side without comment, and the Digimon chased after them, catching up quickly.

By the time they reached the cart, though, Motomiya's irritation had given way to his normal upbeat, laid-back temperament. "Ah, you're back." He grinned at them, but his eyes settled on the class rep. "How was the ramen this time, Ohno-sama?"

She frowned before saying, "It was quite good, but there was something slightly… _off_ that I can't place."

"I don't know what's wrong," one of the workers said, dropping his head in shame. "I follow your recipe, but it's like there's always something missing."

But Motomiya shook his head. "Don't worry about it, Matsui-kun. I know you follow the recipe. I'm sure you're not missing any ingredients."

"Heart."

Hina twisted to look closer at Ichijouji-sensei, and she wasn't the only one.

He cleared his throat before saying again, louder this time, "Heart. What it's missing is heart."

A light blush rose to Motomiya's cheeks, barely noticeable on his already exercise-flushed face, but he didn't comment. After a moment of uncomfortable silence, he said, "Well, we just wanted to check in before heading out. Call me if you need anything, Matsui-kun."

They took a moment to bid goodbye to the five high schoolers, and then they were on their way, walking close together, grass stains and dirt covering their sneakers and legs, the Digimon scurrying behind them.

"Yep," Noguchi said once they were out of hearing, "that was totally a date."

*

The next time Motomiya visited the classroom, he arrived only a couple minutes before the bell rang to signal the end of lunch, and Hina nearly jumped in surprise at seeing him. They'd given up on seeing him that day after he didn't show in the first ten minutes.

Ichijouji glared at him when he set the sack of ramen on the teacher's desk. "I don't have time to eat before class," he said, then pursed his lips and scowled at the offending sack.

Motomiya waved away his concerns. "Then I'll help you teach."

Ichijouji's mouth dropped open.

"Oh, come on, Ken. You need to eat. And really, it can't be that hard."

The bell rang, and the students who'd eaten lunch elsewhere slowly filed into the room and took their seats.

He scoffed. "Of course not," he said, voice growing bitter. "I obviously trained for years to become a teacher just to have some baka with a degree from a technical college and who owns a chain of ramen carts take over my classroom."

Motomiya grinned. "Exactly." Then he glanced toward the front of the classroom. "Now, what are we learning about?"

Ichijouji sighed. "Daisuke, this is Japanese History. Right now, we're discussing the nuances of—"

"Oh, is that all?" He clapped his hands together and grinned like he'd won an award. "Piece of cake. Now, eat your food, and I'll take care of everything."

The whole class watched as he sidled up to the front of the classroom and pulled down the projector screen, then returned to the desk at the back of the room to fiddle with the computer. Ichijouji pursed his lips but powered on the projector, saying, "I'm doing this against my better judgment," before continuing to eat his ramen.

"It'll be great," Motomiya said.

When he stood at the front of the classroom a moment later, he grinned at everyone, and a quick glance around the room showed the rest of the students were as excited for this "lesson" as Hina and Megumi were. Well, excited and a bit nervous.

"Okay, you can forget basically everything you've learned in this class so far," he said, "because this is all you need to know about the history of Japan." As the [video](https://youtu.be/Mh5LY4Mz15o) started to play, he quickly added, "Oh, and we get to test how well you're doing in your English lessons."

Hina didn't understand what he meant until the video began. It was only in English, after all, and moved very quickly, so that the majority of students struggled to understand everything.

But Motomiya just leaned against the windowsill with a huge proud grin on his face, and slowly, people began to laugh. One glance at Ichijouji in the back, though, revealed their teacher burying his face in his hands, unable to decide between glaring at his best friend and laughing till he cried.

That was the last time Ichijouji-sensei allowed Motomiya to stay after the lunch period ended.

*

The next time Motomiya visited, the first semester was almost over. Many of the students were studying, even during their lunch break, and for once, Motomiya wasn't surrounded by a crowd upon his arrival. He and Ichijouji were actually able to sit at the back of the classroom and enjoy lunch together.

Hina and Megumi, though, watched from their regular seats as the two men exchanged a quiet conversation, the words barely able to reach their prying ears.

"Is this a new recipe?" Ichijouji asked, pointing to his cabbage salad.

Motomiya shrugged. "How is it?"

"Do I taste bok choy?"

He nodded.

Ichijouji smiled before taking another bite. "Well, as tired as I get of being your guinea pig, this is actually quite good."

Motomiya scowled at him. "Hey, don't say—"

With a little smirk, Ichijouji caught his gaze. "Do I need to remind you of the _years_ I spent tasting all your experiments? I'm pretty sure that was more traumatic than anything the Digital World threw at me."

"You're mean."

He cocked an eyebrow. "Then you're a hypocrite." And he returned to his salad with a smug smile at having won their little spat.

Then, Motomiya grabbed a bit of the salad with his own chopsticks and chewed it, a thoughtful expression on his face. "Hmm, I thought you liked experimenting," he said after a while, his voice low. "I don't seem to recall you having any complaints about swallowing whatever I feed you."

Ichijouji choked on his food, face instantly red, and spent a long minute coughing while Motomiya lazily patted his back, not at all concerned for his friend's well-being.

Hina and Megumi exchanged uncomfortable glances and slipped from the classroom to talk quietly in the hallway while they ate from their bento boxes.

"I know Noguchi-san said he thought that day at the park was a date," Megumi said, pointing with her chopsticks for effect, "but it doesn't seem like anything has changed. I think they were just hanging out as friends, even though they both like each other."

Hina nodded, her mouth tight as she thought.

"So what're you planning then?"

The girls looked up to see Noguchi and Chiba standing beside them, and the boys dropped to the floor with their own lunches.

Hina bit her lip. "That's exactly what we were about to discuss. I mean, we're almost to summer break and there's no guarantee we'll be able to push them in the right direction during our month off."

Megumi sent the boys a frown, though. "What do you care? I didn't think you wanted them to get together."

With a shrug, Noguchi said, "Well, it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. I mean, Sensei deserves someone to make him happy, and I guess Motomiya might be able to do that."

Megumi scoffed, but Hina was already moving on.

"We need to act fast for this to work," she said.

"And we need to get them alone," Chiba added. "In a way that'll make them confess."

Noguchi scoffed. "Why can't we just lock them in a closet and not let them out until they admit everything?"

Chiba sent his friend a scowl. "Why is locking someone in a closet your go-to?"

He waved a hand dismissively. "Oh, come on, Setsuo, that was an accident."

"Sure didn't seem like an accident when you spent ten minutes laughing on the other side of the door, asshole."

"You're being melodramatic," Noguchi said, rolling his eyes.

"You know," Megumi said, shifting to sit up straight, "that's actually not a terrible idea."

Hina hesitated. "We're planning to lock our teacher in a closet? That sounds like cause for detention. Or worse."

"Yeah, but if they get together, it'll be worth it." Megumi grinned at her best friend, but then her smile faltered. "But you're right, it's risky. And I'm not sure how convincing we can be."

"We'll need help." Chiba's eyes darted around the hallway, searching, and then settled on a distant figure sitting on a windowsill while she ate. "We'll need Ohno-san to help."

The other three turned toward their class rep in the distance, hesitation written on their faces.

They'd definitely prefer not to have to ask her. If she didn't agree, she'd tell on them before they could even set their plan into motion. But on the off chance she did agree, they needed to ask. Her aid would be essential to the plan's success.

The four glanced between each other.

"Okay," Chiba said, "who's going over there?"

After a short debate, they decided to draw straws, and when they went round in a circle, Noguchi drew the shortest straw. He took a deep breath before pushing up to his feet and marching down the hallway toward their quiet and overbearing class rep.

Hina, Megumi, and Chiba watched in silent anticipation.

*

As it turned out, they didn't need to make the effort.

Motomiya didn't show up again for several days, and when he did, it was the day of their semester exams. Ichijouji-sensei had forgotten his lunch again, and Motomiya waltzed into the room like his knight in shining armor with a sack of food.

But instead of being pleased as he laid the sack on his desk, Ichijouji nearly growled. "I told you, you can't be here today."

Motomiya huffed. "It's only lunch, Ken. You need to eat, even if you don't have to do an actual lesson today. Don't pretend otherwise."

Their teacher groaned. "You cannot stay here to distract them," he snapped, keeping his voice low, and with a glance around the classroom, he rose to his feet and dragged Motomiya through the desks and out into the hallway.

Hina and Megumi exchanged wide-eyed glances before scurrying after them.

"These students are trying to fit in last-minute studying," Ichijouji said, still dragging his friend down the hallway, "and they shouldn't be interrupted just because you felt the need to ignore the multiple times I told you not to come today."

"That's not what you said this morning…"

They turned down a hallway, and the girls rushed to follow, unsure how discreet they were actually being. Probably not very—especially when someone shouted their names before they could follow the pair down the second hall.

" _Usui-san! Koboyashi-san!_ "

Hina spun around to find Chiba rushing after them, Noguchi a few paces behind, and by the windows, Ohno looked up from her seat on the windowsill and closed her book before joining them as well.

"Where are you going in a hurry?" Ohno asked with a frown.

"Did we see Motomiya-san?" Chiba asked, drowning out the class rep. "Where were they going?"

Megumi shook her head. "He brought food, and then Sensei dragged him off down that hallway." She met the eyes of each of their party and added, "This is the last day before summer break. Our only chance. It's now or never."

This hallway was quieter, as it only had a couple rooms attached, so it was pretty easy to locate Ichijouji and Motomiya, hovering in a small alcove, standing close enough their chests were nearly touching, and whispering furiously—so furiously it barely counted as whispering.

The group crouched close to the wall, crowding together in a shadow, and hoped they wouldn't be spotted.

"How many times do I have to tell you to be appropriate while here?" Ichijouji snapped. "These are my students and it's my career, and you cannot just waltz in here and do whatever you want. You enjoy frustrating me, don't you?"

Motomiya quirked a smile and pressed a thumb to his chin. "Obviously." But then his smile faded, and he grew serious. "But not like this."

"Then why in the world won't you listen when I tell you not to do something?" Ichijouji didn't sound angry anymore, just tired. "I'm a professional, and my work environment is totally different from yours. You can't come in here and act like you do while selling ramen."

"And you don't have to hide who you are from kids who love you." Motomiya's fingers traced his jawline. "I can't believe you never told them about the Digital World or Wormmon…or _me_."

A hand found Hina's shoulder, and she glanced back to see Megumi's wide eyes. Hina lifted her fingers to clutch her best friend's in return.

Ichijouji sighed. "You know exactly why I didn't tell them about you, Daisuke. The students may not care—well, _some_ of them may not—but the administration…"

"Fuck the administration," Motomiya said with a growl.

"Yes, well, unfortunately, they write my paycheck."

"It's not like you have to work. My ramen cart—"

"I know." Ichijouji smiled softly. "Your company makes more than enough to take care of both of us. But I _like_ teaching, just the same as you still prefer to cook for people instead of run a business from afar."

"It won't always be like this," Motomiya said, and with their eyes locked in an intense gaze, the words sounded like a promise.

"I know."

Then, he quirked a smile. "You know, some of your students are trying to set us up, right?"

Ichijouji paused, frowning, then said, "Usui-san and Koboyashi-san?"

"And Chiba and Noguchi too," Motomiya added with a laugh. "And I think your class rep may be in on it too. I dunno, it's hard to tell with her."

"Ohno-san?"

He nodded.

"I…suppose I should be honored," Ichijouji said slowly.

Motomiya chuckled as he pushed a few loose strands of hair behind his ear. "You sure we can't tell them they're a few years too late?" He shifted forward, closing the distance between them, but Ichijouji pulled back enough there wasn't a connection. "There's no one here, Ken."

This time, it was Ichijouji who surged forward, connecting their lips in a slow but deep kiss. He hooked his fingers in Motomiya's chef's jacket while Motomiya wrapped an arm around his waist—

Hina twisted to look away.

This was way more intimate than she'd anticipated.

But obviously, the group hadn't anticipated they were already in a relationship…and had been for years. Although, that certainly explained the affectionate glances, the silent conversations, and how Motomiya always managed to bring food on the days Ichijouji forgot his lunch.

Down the hallway, the two of them broke apart, breath quivering, and held each other for a long moment before Motomiya started to pull away. "I should head out. Let you eat before class starts." He pressed a short kiss to Ichijouji's lips. "I'll see you at home later."

Ichijouji just nodded, even as Motomiya turned to head back toward the main hallway.

"Shit," Megumi muttered under her breath, pulling her hand back, and the group moved as one, keeping close to the wall, in an attempt to exit quickly without drawing attention to themselves.

Motomiya caught them before they even made it halfway there, but he simply raised an eyebrow and ushered them toward the light of the windows lining the outer hallway. They paused there, and he cast a glance over his shoulder, but there was no sign of Ichijouji yet.

"Okay, I'm just going to assume you heard or saw _something_ ," he said, turning back to them. "Right?"

Hesitantly, they nodded.

He studied them for a moment, and when he spoke, his voice was deeper, firmer. "And I trust you understand why you can't breathe a word?"

"Of course not," Hina finally managed to say.

"Never," Megumi said, and the others voiced their agreement as well.

And then, everyone fell silent while he studied them, until Megumi couldn't handle the awkward silence anymore.

"How long have you been…?" she asked, voice barely a whisper, eyes darting between him and the dark hallway. "I mean, how did you and Ichijouji-sensei get together?"

Motomiya cast a small smile her way before continuing toward the staircase to make his exit as he promised. "Come see me after your exams," he threw over his shoulder. "I'll make you some ramen on the house and tell you a story."

By the time Ichijouji came out of the other hallway, Motomiya was gone and the group of five had returned to their studies. He sat at the teacher's desk in the back of the classroom and ate his ramen with cheeks tinged pink and a soft smile.

Hina knew, when classes were over, she and the others would find Motomiya at his ramen cart and get all the answers they desired.

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know what you think :)


End file.
